Chapter 34: Chapter 34

Since the food at home was no longer edible, she figured she might as well go to the plantation and get something to eat.

She had just dug up a batch of saplings from the plantation yesterday and hadn’t had time to plant new ones, but there were still some tender cucumbers in the vegetable patch she could pick.

Braving the rain, Mu Ying dashed over to Oak Tree General Store.

“Wu Yaya, do you sell any rain gear?”

“Yes. Raincoat, 15 copper coins. Bamboo hat, 15 copper coins. Umbrella, 30 copper coins.”

“Can I choose the size?”

“Of course.”

“Then I’ll take two sets of raincoat and hat—one for me and one for Yuan Gun Gun. And give me a large umbrella.”

“…,” Wu Yaya looked at her, feeling a bit put on the spot. “The small set costs double!”

“Deal.” Mu Ying cheerfully put the money on the counter.

Seeing the money, Wu Yaya decided to go through with the sale. “Wait here a moment.”

It burrowed under the counter, and Mu Ying heard a clatter of noises from below, though she had no idea what it was doing.

Soon, with a thud, a large and a small raincoat and bamboo hat were tossed onto the counter, making Mu Ying wonder just how strong Wu Yaya was.

“Nice, these are great.” Mu Ying put on the larger set, which fit perfectly. She grabbed the hats and raincoats, opened the umbrella, and left satisfied.

Back home, she helped Yuan Gun Gun put on the small raincoat and hat, then strapped on its usual little basket, stuffing in a few pieces of miniature soft bamboo.

Mu Ying picked up her own basket, but when she pinched it lightly, the bamboo strips snapped. “…”

She hadn’t expected the basket to break, and the bamboo tub probably wouldn’t last either. Luckily, Yuan Gun Gun’s little basket, which she bought at the general store, was still fine.

She had no choice but to head back to the store.

“You’re back again?” Wu Yaya glanced at the round little Yuan Gun Gun in its tiny raincoat and hat. Hmm—its craftsmanship was really good. Maybe it should make a set for itself someday.

“Sigh, a lot of things broke this morning and can’t be used anymore,” Mu Ying said helplessly. “Do you know what’s going on?”

“How should a raven like me know? Enough chit-chat, what are you buying?” Wu Yaya squinted its little eyes, sounding annoyed.

“I’ll take a basket and two bamboo tubs—the kind you can strap to a cow’s back.”

“That’ll be 30 copper coins.”

“Pa!” Mu Ying slapped a handful of coins on the counter, then, after a glance, picked up two coins and put them back in her pocket.

With her new basket, Mu Ying was finally ready to head out.

Because of the rain, there weren’t many people walking around camp. Those without treehouses were either hiding from the rain in the tavern or in their newly bought tents.

Mu Ying, holding her umbrella and followed by the plump Yuan Gun Gun, avoided everyone’s gaze and slipped into the plantation.

“Eh? Is the color of these cucumbers a bit off? And these tomatoes—aren’t they a bit too big?”

As soon as she entered the vegetable patch, Mu Ying was stunned. Was this really her garden?

Yesterday, the cucumbers were still tender and green, practically bursting with juice.

Today, they had turned golden yellow, glowing like little light bulbs, still tender and juicy.

If she hadn’t just used her newly learned plant identification spell to confirm they were the same cucumbers as yesterday, Mu Ying would have thought some invasive species had taken over.

“Cucumber: annual vine, fruit is long and round, edible, ripe fruit is golden yellow, skin emits a golden glow…”

Everything seemed normal, except the color and glowing skin were a bit odd. At least they were still edible.

Mu Ying picked one and took a bite. “Yep, it tastes just like cucumber.”

Besides cucumbers, there were also tomato plants that had shot up like little trees, their thickened branches bearing several huge, pumpkin-sized tomatoes.

Fortunately, unlike the glowing cucumbers, they had only grown bigger. At a glance, they were still clearly tomatoes, and even the plant identification spell didn’t show anything unusual.

“Tomato tree: perennial shrub, large nearly spherical fruit, bright red, edible…”

Aside from changing from an annual herb to a perennial shrub, there wasn’t much else different.

With these glowing cucumbers and giant tomatoes, Mu Ying was mentally prepared. So when she saw things like milky lettuce and sour cabbage, she took it in stride.

The peach and jujube trees didn’t seem to have changed much, except they’d grown a lot taller.

Mu Ying ate a cucumber and shared a giant tomato with Yuan Gun Gun, filling her stomach.

She still had no idea what had happened to these plants.

Mu Ying packed some of these strange vegetables into her basket, covered them with leaves, and happily headed back to Oak Tree General Store.

“…,” Wu Yaya didn’t even bother to look up this time. On a rainy day like this, she sure didn’t seem to mind running around.

“Wu Yaya, I need to see Grandpa Shaum,” Mu Ying said, holding her basket.

“Oh, go on in,” Wu Yaya replied, not interested, retracting its gaze.

“I guessed you’d be here soon.”

As soon as Mu Ying entered the back room, she saw Grandpa Shaum sitting there, as if he’d been waiting for a while. His words made her even more curious.

“You knew I’d come?”

“This rain is no ordinary rain. I figured you’d discover some strange things,” Shaum said, stroking his beard and nodding sagely.

“You know about the plantation I set up, right? A lot of the plants in the vegetable patch seem to have mutated.” Mu Ying pulled aside the leaves covering her basket, revealing the fruits and vegetables inside.

“Oh?” Shaum came over for a look. “Glowing cucumbers, tomato trees… now that’s interesting.”"

"“Did you just say the rain is unusual? Is it really because of the rainwater?” Mu Ying asked curiously. Even her own Spring of Restoration didn’t have such miraculous effects.

“This is a gift from the universe to your Deep Blue Star. The rain won’t stop for a while, so make good use of this time—you’ll reap great rewards. Oh, by the way, could I occasionally visit your plantation during this period? After all, opportunities like this are rare,” Shaum said, his words carrying a hidden meaning. With his usual exaggerated winks and expressions, Mu Ying understood—there were some things that couldn’t be said outright.

“Of course, you’re welcome anytime. If only the others in the territory could see you too,” Mu Ying replied with a mischievous grin. It would be best if everyone just assumed that the white mist belonged to Grandpa Shaum. That way, even if someone saw her going in, they’d just think she had his permission.

“You little rascal, so clever!” Shaum laughed heartily, fishing something out of his pocket and tossing it to her. “I see you’re always raising seedlings and planting trees. Here, have some fun with this.”

Mu Ying caught the unique little woven basket and, upon inspection, realized it was actually a spatial item.

[Seedling Basket]